A Taste of Fame

Mom and I are headed to another library book sale tonight, so I'll just jump right into the reviews since I have two of them today.

A Taste of Fame by Linda Evans Shepherd and Eva Marie Everson is the most recent entry in the Potluck Catering Club series. The women of the club are in for the ride of their lives! Nelson, Lisa Leanna's son, entered some footage he shot of the club catering a wedding, and it's made its way to a reality TV show contest. The women are on the fast track to fame with all of its perks (bumped to first class) and the pitfalls (dirty laundry on internet message boards). The show flies them to New York to compete in a series of competitions that will put their skills, their faith, and their friendship to the test. I have become completely addicted to this series. I love the variety of characters from brusque Evangeline and Donna to sweet Vonnie and too-sweet Lisa Leann, they are all real women facing challenges we all do. Evangeline and Lisa Leann's trip to New York was the perfect mix of tourist fun and panic. I appreciated how the authors made the Big Apple come to life without falling ito the stereotypes of rude people and crime ridden streets. It's a fresh treat from the first to the last page.

The Potluck Club Cookbook by Linda Evans Shepherd and Eva Marie Everson is filled with so many terrific recipes! I had so much fun going through this book, first I read it cover to cover, because the authors supplement the recipes with stories about how they found them or use them. Second, I went through it again putting sticky notes on each recipe I couldn't wait to try out. The recipes are easy, a must for an amateur cook like me, but they are for downhome, traditional foods that families love. The chocolate cake recipe is to DIE for, I can't tell you how many compliments I received after making it. The chapter with healthy foods has recipes that genuinely taste good as well as being good for you. The Italian chicken was a big hit in my house. The Cheddar cheese soup was a true success: both girls ate two bowls, and my husband took the leftovers to work for a couple of days after. I served the taco casserole to some family, and they requested the recipe for it, and you know that's the best indicator of a good food, if someone asks you for the recipe. I had that happen several times with this book, and I'm not done sampling! It has definitely earned a permanent place in my kitchen.

The winner of the Karen Kingsbury children's books was Karen Bushy. Congrats to Karen! I hope you'll come back on Monday when I kick off another contest!